ALBUQUERQUE — Speaking to reporters a day before Colorado is to face UNLV in the Buffs’ first NCAA Tournament game since 2003, Boyle was asked if the Running Rebels remind him of any Pac-12 team.

“I don’t think there’s one team,” Boyle said Wednesday, “but as I look in our league in the Pac-12, I see a team with Oregon State’s athleticism and size from the back court to the front court.

“I see a team with Oregon’s ability to shoot the ball from a lot of different spots on the floor. So it’s kind of a combination between Oregon and Oregon State.

“But I see a (UNLV) team that’s skilled maybe more than Oregon State is, and they’re probably more athletic than Oregon is. But they shoot the 3-ball like Oregon does. Two pretty tough things to deal with.”

Terry Frei graduated from Wheat Ridge High School in the Denver area and has degrees in history and journalism from the University of Colorado-Boulder. He worked for the Rocky Mountain News while attending CU and joined the Post staff after graduation. He has also worked at the Oregonian in Portland, Ore., and The Sporting News. His seventh book, March 1939: Before the Madness, was issued in February 2014.